Electric atmosphere at Pub in the Park festival despite the British weather
here is something rather special about outdoor live music and dancing in wellington boots. Once again, the British weather did the Chichester Pub in the Park proud and let the heavens open to test the will powers of attendees as they enrobed in paca-macs and prepared for a day of wet weather.
Chichester College played host to the Pub in the Park event on July 24 and 25 featuring live acts from Gabrielle, Soul II Soul Soundsystem, to Dodgy, Toploader and Jack Savoretti. Alongside the music were frequent chats with Matt Tebbutt, best known for presenting shows such as Channel 4’s Food Unwrapped and Drop Down Menu as well as BBC’s Saturday Kitchen and the Good Food channel’s Market Kitchen.
Each day offered an afternoon and/or evening session of music and food to dance and sing, drink and laugh together as venues opened to allow us to meet in numbers and enjoy such events again.
Celebrity chefs were
Tplentiful as designer marquees transformed into your local public house with The Hand and Flowers, The Horse and Groom and Kirdford’s own Half Moon serving up food.
Tom Kerridge had one of his public houses serving up barbecue-glazed brisket, chicken and mushroom pie, breaded scampi and Boston bean and cheddar pie. He also had his double-decker bus present that had a long line of followers waiting to buy cheeseburgers and hardcore slaw or 6oz burgers with smoked applewood cheese, dill pickles and burger sauce or The Vegan Tom with chipotle fivebean chilli with guacamole and sour cream and lime. This was alongsideThePaulalfrescobuswith PaulAinsworth’sCornishslowroasthogcobwithsageandonion stuffingandtriplemustardceleriac remoulade.Wewerenotgoingtogo hungryasMichelin-starredMayfair chefAtulKochhar’srestaurant offeredspicesintheformofchana samosachaat;chickentikkapie; Atul’standoorifriedchickenand kheema paratha.
There was an artisan market, shopping village, and lifestyle stalls as well as Weston’s Cider, Pimm’s, Greene King, Slurp wines and Champagne Piaff.
We had VIP tickets which enabled us to shelter from the rain under a marquee by the side of the stage. You had to download the Pub in the Park app to order drinks and your special wristband entitled you to a few glasses of wine and a selection of food from the food stalls and pubs. We also found special chats and photo opportunities with Matt Tebbutt who was camped out in our VIP marquee.
We then got ready to party with friends as the last evening’s live acts took to the stage – Max White, The Christians and Jack Savoretti, my girlfriend’s favourite so we danced in wellies and the rain stopped thank goodness for the ladies in summer dresses and sandals!
The organisers had given 1,000 free tickets to the amazing key workers who have helped the country through the last year as a way of saying thank you – the atmosphere was electric!
See pubintheparkuk.com